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Final cost figures released for Wu’s Canada trip
Mayor Michelle Wu spent three days in Nova Scotia, using more than $11,000 in taxpayer dollars to cover travel expenses for herself, staff, and police.
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu used more than $11,000 in taxpayer dollars to fund her trip to Canada last month, according to documents provided by the city.
Wu traveled to Nova Scotia with her husband, three children, and a few staff members from Nov. 9 to 12. The trip was meant to highlight and strengthen the ties between Boston and Nova Scotia. Wu met with local leaders in Halifax and wielded a chainsaw to help cut down Boston’s Christmas tree, which the Canadian province sends as a gift to Boston every year.
Taxpayer money did not cover the travel expenses of Wu’s family, except for the hotel room that they shared. The Fund for Parks and Recreation in Boston, which is privately funded, covered the expenses of Cathy Baker-Eclipse, Boston’s interim parks commissioner.
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Taxpayer dollars did cover the flights, hotel rooms, and other accommodations of Wu, Director Of Scheduling Phyliss St-Hubert, Digital Communications Director Paul Bologna, and two Boston police officers who provided security for the mayor.
Last month, city officials provided documents to The Boston Globe showing that about $5,000 in taxpayer dollars were being used for flights and hotel rooms.
But in total, the city used $11,273 in public funds for the trip, according to documents sent to Boston.com this week and conversion rates from the Bank of Canada. Baker-Eclipse’s travel expenses totaled $2,082, bringing the total price tag of the trip above $13,000.
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Wu’s economy flight, which was booked in late October, cost $573.79. Her room at the Halifax Marriott Harbourfront Hotel cost $735.56. The most expensive purchase made using public funds was Bologna’s economy flight ticket, which cost $1,302.77.
Travel expenses for the two BPD officers, Ydritzabel Oller and Cary Chin, totaled $6,220.88. This included payments for transportation, meals, hotel rooms, parking, and gas.
Wu embarked on the trip just days after officially securing her second term. Throughout the campaign, Wu cast herself as a foil to the Trump administration, vocally opposing a range of actions taken by the federal government. That theme continued during the trip, as Wu contrasted her actions with those of a president who has been antagonistic to America’s northern neighbors.
“At a time when the federal regime is making life more difficult for residents in Boston and our neighbors in Canada, it’s important that we make clear where we stand. The people of Boston support our Canadian friends,” Wu wrote on social media during the trip.
She met with Halifax Mayor Andy Fillmore, Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston, and other local leaders while in Canada. Wu participated in the annual Halifax Remembrance Day Ceremony, toured a center for health care research, and visited a logistics lab.
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Wu became the first Boston mayor to attend and participate in the “Tree for Boston” tree cutting ceremony in Nova Scotia. The province sends a massive tree to Boston every December as gratitude for the city’s help during the 1917 Halifax explosion. It was considered to be the worst man-made disaster in history at the time, and local leaders in Massachusetts galvanized a major relief effort to help Halifax residents.
The tree is now standing on Boston Common, illuminated in holiday lights. Wu attended the tree lighting ceremony on Thursday night.
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